Fill options

Fill refers to the interior of a shape, line, or character.

No fill     To make a shape transparent or colorless, or to remove fill from a shape, click this option.

Solid fill     To add color and transparency to a shape, click this option.

Gradient fill     To add a gradient fill to a shape, click this option.

Picture or texture fill     To use a picture as fill for a shape or to add texture to a shape, click this option.

Automatic     To use the default fill settings that are determined by Excel, click this option.

Invert if negative     To invert the fill pattern when data series or data points represent negative values, select this check box. This option is available only when data series or data points are selected.

Vary colors by point     To display a different color for each data point in the chart, select this check box. The name of this option changes to Vary colors by slice when a pie chart or doughnut chart is selected.

Solid fill

Color     To choose a color for the shape, click Color , and then click the color that you want. To change to a color that is not in the theme colors, click More Colors, and then either click the color that you want on the Standard tab, or mix your own color on the Custom tab.

Transparency     To specify how much you can see through a shape, move the Transparency slider, or enter a number in the box next to the slider. You can vary the percentage of transparency from 0 (fully opaque, the default setting) to 100% (fully transparent).

Gradient fill

Preset colors     To choose a built-in gradient fill, click Preset colors , and then click the option that you want.

Type     To specify the direction to use when drawing the gradient fill, select an option from the list. The Type that you select determines the available Direction.

Direction     To choose a different progression of color and shades, click Direction, and then click the option that you want. The Directions that are available depend on the gradient Type that you choose.

Angle     To specify the angle that the gradient fill is rotated within the shape, enter the degree value that you want. This option is available only when you select Linear as the Type.

Gradient stops

Gradient stops consist of a position, a color, and a transparency value. The transparency value applies to the gradient stop, not to the overall fill. Gradient stops are used to create nonlinear gradients. For example, if you want to create a gradient that goes from red to green to blue, you need to add three gradient stops — one for each color. Or, if you want to create a gradient that shows up only in the corner of a shape, you need to use gradient stops to make the gradient nonlinear.

Stop list     The gradient fill is made up of several gradient stops, but you can change only one gradient stop at a time. When you click the gradient stop that you want to edit in the list, the position, color, and transparency options reflect the current settings for that gradient stop.

Add     To add a gradient stop, click Add, and then set the Stop position, Color, and Transparency that you want.

Remove     To delete a gradient stop, click the Stop number in the list that you want to delete, and then click Remove.

Stop position     To set the location for the color and transparency change in the gradient fill, move the Stop position slider or enter a number in the box next to the slider.

Color     To choose the color to use for the gradient stop, click Color , and then click the color that you want. To change to a color that is not in the theme colors, click More Colors, and then either click the color that you want on the Standard tab, or mix your own color on the Custom tab.

Transparency     To specify how much you can see through the shape at the specified Stop position, move the Transparency slider or enter a number in the box next to the slider. You can vary the percentage of transparency from 0 (fully opaque, the default setting) to 100% (fully transparent).

Rotate with shape     To rotate the gradient fill with the shape's rotation, select this check box.

Picture or texture fill

Texture     To choose a built-in texture, click this button, and then click the option that you want.

Insert from     To choose a built-in texture, click this button, and then click the option that you want.

File     To insert a picture from a file, click this button, and then locate the picture that you want to add. Double-click the picture to insert it.

Clipboard     To paste a picture from the Clipboard, click this button.

Clip Art     To insert clip art, click this button, and then in the Search text box, type a word that describes the clip art that you want, or type all or some of the file name of the clip art file. To include clip art that is available on Office Online in your search, select the Include content from Office Online check box, click Go, and then click the file to insert it.

Tile picture as texture     To use multiple copies of the same picture as a texture for the shape, select this option.

Tiling options     To determine the scaling factor for the texture fill, use the following tiling options.

• Offset X     To shift the entire tiled picture fill to the left (negative numbers) or to the right (positive numbers), enter a number in the box.

• Offset Y     To shift the entire tiled picture fill up (negative numbers) or down (positive numbers), enter a number in the box.

• Scale X     To specify a percentage for the horizontal scaling of the original image, enter a number in the box.

• Scale Y     To specify a percentage for the vertical scaling of the original image, enter a number in the box.

• Alignment     Describes the anchor position where the picture tiling begins. To specify the placement of the tiled picture or texture, select an option from the list.

• Mirror type     To specify whether the alternating horizontal or vertical tiles display a mirror or flip image with every other tile, select an option from the list.

Stretch     To stretch a picture to fill the selected shapes, click this option.

Stretch options     To determine the offsets between the borders of the shape and the borders of the picture when the picture is stretched, enter the offset percentage that you want in the Left, Right, Top, and Bottom boxes. These option are available only when Stretch is selected.

Stack     To repeat a picture vertically to fill the selected shapes, click this option.

Stack and Scale     To repeat a picture vertically to fill the selected shapes and scale the pictures to better fit, click this option, and then type the number that you want in the units/picture box.

Transparency     To specify how much you can see through the picture or texture, move the Transparency slider, or enter a number in the box next to the slider. You can vary the percentage of transparency from 0 (fully opaque, the default setting) to 100% (fully transparent).